Balenciaga Spring 2019: The Ultimate Fashion Reboot

Demna Gvasalia Rewrote the Balenciaga Codes for Spring 2019

There were zero sneakers on the runway at Balenciaga for Spring 2019, instead creative director Demna Gvasalia continued with his refinement of a 3D molding technique that was introduced last season. His exploration into new tailoring codes, reflects Cristobal Balenciaga’s obsession with the silhouette, rewritten for 2019 with square shoulder suit jackets and futuristic femme-fatales wearing sculpted dresses with nipped-waist coats and strong-shoulders.

Ultimately, it was ”neo tailoring” – a concept conjured by Gvasalia in order to draw a new and youthful consumer into the world of suiting – which gave this collection its depth. This resulted in light weight jackets with soft shoulders and light weight fabrics. “It’s a way to make the new generations wear tailoring,” said Gvasalia. “It feels like wearing a jogging suit and that’s what makes it approachable. ”The Balenciaga logo, also played a key role with necklaces and oddly shaped clutch bags among the most coveted items most likely to be top sellers come next season. A series of 70s velvet and Lycra dresses in an Eiffel Tower print poked fun at Paris’s most famous tourist destination. While heavy metal inspired dark Japanese denim was juxtaposed with biker boots, complete with in built LED screens.

In essence, this was the ultimate fashion reboot.

“I always had this idea of a video tunnel, like being inside someone’s digital mind,” said Demna Gvasalia. “Fashion shows are for transporting people, otherwise there’s no point. It was like working on a movie, getting people into another reality, so it stays as a memory.”